Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure for London

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1021 Londoners have responded | 13/06/2022 - 10/07/2022

People strolling in a park with a pram and a dog

Help us measure wellbeing and sustainability in London 

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For many years, London’s success as a place to live and work has mostly been measured in terms of its material wealth.

Research shows that there are many things that influence how Londoners experience living and working in the capital. For example, employment, education, health, the environment, and our communities. 

City Hall is developing a Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure that will bring together data on these multiple aspects of our lives that underline wellbeing. This is so that we can track which aspects of our lives are getting better over time and tackle any which are getting worse. 

After taking the survey, join in the discussion and tell us more: 

  • What do you think of this Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure?  
  • Have we missed anything out? If so, please let us know. 
  • Is anything about it unclear or confusing? 

The discussion ran from 13 June 2022 - 10 July 2022

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Comments (113)

Avatar for - Leatherback sea turtle

As long as regular working people are taxed highly, while all the billionaires, millionaires, ceos and directors pay a small portion of tax, the rest of us will live pay check to oay check and never be able to afford a house or flat that is...

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As long as regular working people are taxed highly, while all the billionaires, millionaires, ceos and directors pay a small portion of tax, the rest of us will live pay check to oay check and never be able to afford a house or flat that is freehold and 100% full ownership. And companies need to give better pensions. People can't retire anymore because pensions are terrible and costs are soo high.

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Avatar for - Orangutan

Generally out of touch with the struggle most people are facing to feed their families and heat their homes. This is the number one priority. All the other stuff about wellbeing is not relevant when many people are worried about just paying...

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Generally out of touch with the struggle most people are facing to feed their families and heat their homes. This is the number one priority. All the other stuff about wellbeing is not relevant when many people are worried about just paying their bills. Rather than wasting money in pointless surveys how about cut your staff and reduce our council tax

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Sustainability and wellbeing are absolutely about being able to feed families and pay energy bills.

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Sustainability and wellbeing are absolutely about being able to feed families and pay energy bills.

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Avatar for - Saola

Today I saw a ladybird in my garden. They're quite common in summer. I've designed a garden for wildlife, which requires some effort. Many gardens in our street have been left uncared for by the short-term tenants of buy-to-let landlords...

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Today I saw a ladybird in my garden. They're quite common in summer. I've designed a garden for wildlife, which requires some effort. Many gardens in our street have been left uncared for by the short-term tenants of buy-to-let landlords (they could give the tenants some basic gardening tools and a clause in the lease, the landlords extract enough money from tenants in rent), or completely concreted-over by some owners. This deterioration began some years ago increasing over time. The words that express what I really think about all this probably wouldn't be allowed in your talk.

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So, so lucky to have a garden. There used to be schemes for putting people who could not look after their gardens or needed some help in touch with people who had no gardens and would love to help out or share one. This should work for buy...

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So, so lucky to have a garden. There used to be schemes for putting people who could not look after their gardens or needed some help in touch with people who had no gardens and would love to help out or share one. This should work for buy-to-let landlords too.

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I was unhappy about only being offered a zero carbon future in the Envoronment section, as it can still be heavvily polluted (eg SO2, H2S) whilst being zero carbon.

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This is an excellent point to raise. Zero carbon is necessary but not sufficient.

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This is an excellent point to raise. Zero carbon is necessary but not sufficient.

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Avatar for - Sumatran elephant

It’s a wish list. Of course it diesn’r reflect life. That’s not it was about. Also with millions of people you have to specify which population you are referring to.
Sloppy and inexpert. And a total waste of money.

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Good cities don't happen by accident but by design. I don't agree that the interests of different communities are that divergent either. We all want secure homes, clean air, leisure opportunities and to live peacefully. That means...

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Good cities don't happen by accident but by design. I don't agree that the interests of different communities are that divergent either. We all want secure homes, clean air, leisure opportunities and to live peacefully. That means consultation and investment.

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Having Wellbeing and Sustainability Measures are a positive thing, but they need to be more comprehensive. It needs to include a more progressive approach to how the authorities deal with race and gender inequality, violence, injustices...

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Having Wellbeing and Sustainability Measures are a positive thing, but they need to be more comprehensive. It needs to include a more progressive approach to how the authorities deal with race and gender inequality, violence, injustices. For instance, the government introduced Sus-laws that the police are using, targeting Black and ethnic minority citizens. That cannot be right and needs to end.
Racism and misogyny crops up time and again; its ugly; in schools, universities, NHS, the police and army. It cannot continue and measures must be introduced to train all new employees and the existing ones. We all need to feel safe in London and in doing our jobs. Injustice breeds violence and resentment. We simply cannot afford to have services that are not performing justly. London can do better and it can do better together, therefore, we need to speak with one voice. Discrimination is not acceptable. Wherever it appears we need to stop it, no matter at what level we are. It cannot continue to make people feel unwanted anywhere in London. We are a great city and we can do better.

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I do agree with the above comments but we must include disabled people here.

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I hope all these will be executed and applied, not just in paper! Or else it is just a waste of time!

Avatar for - Amur leopard

I think the single most important issue for most people is safety and addressing antisocial behaviour whether it's fly-tipping, aggressive dogs, not picking up after dogs, mobile phone snatching, intimidating groups of youths and, for women...

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I think the single most important issue for most people is safety and addressing antisocial behaviour whether it's fly-tipping, aggressive dogs, not picking up after dogs, mobile phone snatching, intimidating groups of youths and, for women, feeling safe in their own neighbourhoods. More community police would be a good start.

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Avatar for - Amur leopard

This Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure appears relatively comprehensive in its undertaking. However, financing seem an overwhelming factor in determining the implementation of such strategies: perhaps a favorable government, or a...

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This Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure appears relatively comprehensive in its undertaking. However, financing seem an overwhelming factor in determining the implementation of such strategies: perhaps a favorable government, or a different view of how public finance functions, or can be made to work. Subjectively speaking, public officials need to buy in to the notion of wellbeing over systematic profit-manufacturing and entitled inequality.

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Agree with this, absolutely.

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Agree with this, absolutely.

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Avatar for - Monarch butterfly

Why are seniors the forgotten people, so much is offered to support young people and people with young families, but as always brush older people aside, we don’t all own houses or have large pensions, many live alone and go days without...

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Why are seniors the forgotten people, so much is offered to support young people and people with young families, but as always brush older people aside, we don’t all own houses or have large pensions, many live alone and go days without seeing or speaking to anyone, many struggle to walk far, therefore reliable public transport is essential, what about affordable dedicated housing for older people

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What concerns me is that there is huge disparity between those who are comfortably housed and have work, food, heating, company, health care etc. and those who are disadvantaged by being in poorly maintained housing, with high levels of...

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What concerns me is that there is huge disparity between those who are comfortably housed and have work, food, heating, company, health care etc. and those who are disadvantaged by being in poorly maintained housing, with high levels of pollution, noise, antisocial behaviour etc. 100 years ago these issues were addressed by Peabody Estates etc. What can we do now?

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Avatar for -

Build social rent and genuinely affordable eco-housing, by the thousands of units. This is not going to happen with a Conservative government, and Labour did not do enough of it. Unless a very substantial proportion of the population, eg...

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Build social rent and genuinely affordable eco-housing, by the thousands of units. This is not going to happen with a Conservative government, and Labour did not do enough of it. Unless a very substantial proportion of the population, eg 50%, kick up a massive fuss, the housing crisis will continue to be ignored. The reality is that the market will never provide sustainable housing for everyone - only for the well-off. So a different system has to be used to ensure everyone has reasonable quality properly affordable housing.

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Avatar for - Amur leopard

You have missed defining differences between age groups/ career stages and between families and people living alone. There are a lot of us contributing by working then reaching an older age and still feeling excluded and ignored.

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You have a point. Many people reaching an older age should not feel excluded and should have many facilities available to exercise and meet up with other people in the city.

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You have a point. Many people reaching an older age should not feel excluded and should have many facilities available to exercise and meet up with other people in the city.

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Avatar for - Sea turtle

Neither National nor Local government can create either of these measures. But both can certainly make individuals' chances of enjoying either of the measures much worse. We need more freedom and less government.

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I don't agree. Both national and local government has the means to legislate and regulate for a better and more sustainable environment. Noise pollution laws are one example. Controlling times that deliveries and noisy rubbish collection...

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I don't agree. Both national and local government has the means to legislate and regulate for a better and more sustainable environment. Noise pollution laws are one example. Controlling times that deliveries and noisy rubbish collection vehicles can be on the streets is another. Housing standards, housing provision, zoning, subsidising public transport ...... there are many ways government can increase social and environmental standards and values.

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Avatar for - Polar bear

Nothing really seems to being done to protect us from vehicle pollution

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Nothing really seems to being done to protect us from vehicle pollution

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I think that's important too. Love em or loathe em, the LTNs seem to have reduced journeys. If this continues, they might start reducing pollution. Electric buses are pretty cool too but this all feels to little, too late.

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I think that's important too. Love em or loathe em, the LTNs seem to have reduced journeys. If this continues, they might start reducing pollution. Electric buses are pretty cool too but this all feels to little, too late.

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Avatar for - Sumatran elephant

Are there not already accepted criteria and benchmarks for wellbeing and sustainability that we should assess London against? Economists, demographers, social scientists, environmentalists - help us get this right, save us from re...

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Are there not already accepted criteria and benchmarks for wellbeing and sustainability that we should assess London against? Economists, demographers, social scientists, environmentalists - help us get this right, save us from re-inventing wheels.
Another point: wellbeing and sustainability require decent space and resources for each person, but they're not making London any bigger, so less space per head as more of us live here. Not just a London problem of course, but should London start to think about some policies?

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I question why we were asked about what we think most Londoners want, rather than what I/we want? I think you will get different responses, and it seems to me it's of more use to know what people want themselves than ask their opinion on...

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I question why we were asked about what we think most Londoners want, rather than what I/we want? I think you will get different responses, and it seems to me it's of more use to know what people want themselves than ask their opinion on what others may want? How do you know how good we are at assessing other people's views? And what's the benefit of knowing people's opinions of others?

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Avatar for - Sea turtle

Difficult to say goodbye to petrol driven vehicles when you can't park outside your own house. Plenty of jobs maybe available, but are they in anything other than service industries? London can't survive on JUST service based jobs... About...

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Difficult to say goodbye to petrol driven vehicles when you can't park outside your own house. Plenty of jobs maybe available, but are they in anything other than service industries? London can't survive on JUST service based jobs... About time someone in City Hall picked up the challenge and encourage manufacturing...

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Manufacturing what? The shift to international rentier economy gets in the way of that, and the rentiers just suck up our money without investing in manufacturing.

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Manufacturing what? The shift to international rentier economy gets in the way of that, and the rentiers just suck up our money without investing in manufacturing.

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More action on crime, my local area has become a hotbed of muggings, phone thefts, etc. All perpetrated by gangs of young people on bikes. Every incident reported to local police who do nothing but victim blame "don't have your phone...

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More action on crime, my local area has become a hotbed of muggings, phone thefts, etc. All perpetrated by gangs of young people on bikes. Every incident reported to local police who do nothing but victim blame "don't have your phone visible at tube station" , "be more aware of your surroundings" etc. Loved living here for 30 + years but getting scary to go out at night alone now. Should be safe to use your phone outside a tube station!

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Avatar for - Monarch butterfly

What do you think of this Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure?
Fine - if it acted on.

Have we missed anything out? If so, please let us know.
Perhaps grants for electric charging points for those living in flats.

Is anything about it...

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What do you think of this Wellbeing and Sustainability Measure?
Fine - if it acted on.

Have we missed anything out? If so, please let us know.
Perhaps grants for electric charging points for those living in flats.

Is anything about it unclear or confusing?
No

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Avatar for -

Electric charging infrastructure needs sorting out fast, without allowing massive price increases. More cabbies would switch to electric if there were more supercharging points available, and at a reasonable rate. Why hasn't the London...

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Electric charging infrastructure needs sorting out fast, without allowing massive price increases. More cabbies would switch to electric if there were more supercharging points available, and at a reasonable rate. Why hasn't the London mayor tried to ensure redundant underground car parks (or indeed above ground ones) have not been turned into electric charging hubs for commercial and private vehicles?

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Avatar for - Sumatran elephant

Enabling more to travel by active transport would improve many measures. Health (physical and mental), air quality, climate change, to mention the more obvious.

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Enabling more to travel by active transport would improve many measures. Health (physical and mental), air quality, climate change, to mention the more obvious.

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